Browsing Burlando, Alfredo by Subject "Fertility"

Burlando, Alfredo(University of Oregon, Dept of Economics, November 2, 2010)

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Burlando, Alfredo
2011-02-09T22:25:21Z
2011-02-09T22:25:21Z
2010-11-02
http://hdl.handle.net/1794/10959
41 p.
Do transitory income shocks affect infant health? I find evidence that birth weights fell following
a temporary income reduction caused by an unexpected, month-long blackout in Zanzibar. Relying on
350 household surveys collected during field work, I show that the 2008 blackout reduced labor supply
of workers in electricity-dependent jobs by an average of 25%, with no effect on workers in other sectors.
The income shock was temporary. Using over 20,000 birth records from a maternity ward, I document a
reduction in the average birth weight of children exposed to the blackout while in utero, and an increase
in the probability of low birth weight. Supporting a causal interpretation of these results, the reduction
in weights is correlated with measures of maternal exposure to the blackout. In particular, reductions
in birth weights were largest among children from wards with intermediate levels of employment in
electrified sectors. The two causes that are most consistent with these results are a blackout-induced
decline in maternal nutrition, and maternal stress. Alternative explanations are examined, including the
possible effects of a temporary fertility shift. It is shown that the blackout increased births, but that
selection into pregnancy cannot explain the drop in birth weights.
en_US
University of Oregon, Dept of Economics
University of Oregon Economics Department Working Papers; 2010-1
Neonatal health
Birth weight, Low -- Zanzibar
Nutrition
Fertility
Transitory income
Blackouts
Africa
Low birth weight
Electric power failures -- Zanzibar
Impact of Transitory Income on Birth Weights: Evidence from a Blackout in Zanzibar
Working Paper